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EAST OF THE SUN AND WEST OF THE MOON
OLD TALES FROM THE NORTH
ILLUSTRATED BY KAY NIELSEN
NEW YORK GEORGE H DORAN COMPANY
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PREFACE
A folk-tale, in its primitive plainness of word and entire absence of complexity in thought, is peculiarly sensitive and susceptible to the touch of stranger hands; and he who has been able to acquaint himself with the Norske Folkeeventyr of Asbjörnsen and Moe (from which these stories are selected), has an advantage over the reader of an English rendering. Of this advantage Mr. Kay Nielsen has fully availed himself: and the exquisite bizarrerie of his drawings aptly expresses the innermost significance of the old-world, old-wives' fables. For to term these legends, Nursery Tales, would be to curtail them, by nine-tenths, of their interest. They are the romances of the childhood of Nations: they are the never-failing springs of sentiment, of sensation, of heroic example, from which primeval peoples drank their fill at will.
The quaintness, the tenderness, the grotesque yet realistic intermingling of actuality with supernaturalism, by which the original Norske Folkeeventyr are characterised, will make an appeal to all, as represented in the pictures of Kay Nielsen. And these imperishable traditions, whose bases are among the very roots of all antiquity, are here reincarnated in line and colour, to the delight of all who ever knew or now shall know them.
Permission to reprint the Stories in this book, which originally appeared in Sir G. W. Dasent's "Popular Tales from the Norse," has been obtained from Messrs. George Routledge & Sons, Ltd. THE THREE PRINCESSES IN THE BLUE MOUNTAIN is printed by arrangement with Messrs. David Nutt; and PRINCE LINDWORM is newly translated for this volume.
CONTENTS
PAGE EAST OF THE SUN AND WEST OF THE MOON 9 THE BLUE BELT 29 PRINCE LINDWORM 53 THE LASSIE AND HER GODMOTHER 65 THE HUSBAND WHO WAS TO MIND THE HOUSE 75 THE LAD WHO WENT TO THE NORTH WIND 79 THE THREE PRINCESSES OF WHITELAND 85 SORIA MORIA CASTLE 97 THE GIANT WHO HAD NO HEART IN HIS BODY 117 THE PRINCESS ON THE GLASS HILL 131 THE WIDOW'S SON 149 THE THREE BILLY GOATS GRUFF 167 THE THREE PRINCESSES IN THE BLUE MOUNTAIN 171 THE CAT ON THE DOVREFELL 200 ONE'S OWN CHILDREN ARE ALWAYS PRETTIEST 203
ILLUSTRATIONS
EAST OF THE SUN AND WEST OF THE MOON Page "Well, mind and hold tight by my shaggy coat, and then there's nothing to fear," said the Bear, so she rode a long, long way 9 "Tell me the way, then," she said, "and I'll search you out" 16 And then she lay on a little green patch in the midst of the gloomy thick wood 24 The North Wind goes over the sea 32 And flitted away as far as they could from the Castle that lay East of the Sun and West of the Moon 40
THE BLUE BELT
The Lad in the Bear's skin, and the King of Arabia's daughter 48
PRINCE LINDWORM
She saw the Lindworm for the first time, as he came in and stood by her side 56
THE LASSIE AND HER GODMOTHER
She could not help setting the door a little ajar, just to peep in, when--Pop! out flew the Moon 64 Then he coaxed her down and took her home 72 "Here are your children; now you shall have them again. I am the Virgin Mary" 80 He too saw the image in the water; but he looked up at once, and became aware of the lovely Lassie who sate there up in the tree FRONTISPIECE
THE THREE PRINCESSES OF WHITELAND
"You'll come to three Princesses, whom you will see standing in the earth up to their necks, with only their heads out" 88 So the man gave him a pair of snow shoes 96 The King went into the Castle, and at first his Queen didn't know him, he was so wan and thin, through wandering so far and being so woeful 104
THE GIANT WHO HAD NO HEART IN HIS BODY
The six brothers riding out to woo 112 "On that island stands a church; in that church is a well; in that well swims a duck" 120 He took a long, long farewell of the Princess, and when he got out of the Giant's door, there stood the Wolf waiting for him 128
THE WIDOW'S SON
When he had walked a day or so, a strange man met him. "Whither away?" asked the man 136 But still the Horse begged him to look behind him 144 And this time she whisked off the wig; and there lay the lad, so lovely, and white and red, just as the Princess had seen him in the morning sun 152 The Lad in the Battle 160
THE THREE PRINCESSES IN THE BLUE MOUNTAIN
Just as they bent down to take the rose a big dense snowdrift came and carried them away 168 The Troll was quite willing, and before long he fell asleep and began snoring 176 As soon as they tugged at the rope, the Captain and the Lieutenant pulled up the Princesses, the one after the other 184 No sooner had he whistled than he heard a whizzing and a whirring from all quarters, and such a large flock of birds swept down that they blackened all the field in which they settled 192
EAST OF THE SUN AND WEST OF THE MOON
Once on a time there was a poor husbandman who had so many children that he hadn't much of either food or clothing to give them. Pretty children they all were, but the prettiest was the youngest daughter, who was so lovely there was no end to her loveliness.
So one day, 'twas on a Thursday evening late at the fall of the year, the weather was so wild and rough outside, and it was so cruelly dark, and rain fell and wind blew, till the walls of the cottage shook again. There they all sat round the fire, busy with this thing and that. But just then, all at once something gave three taps on the window-pane. Then the father went out to see what was the matter; and, when he got out of doors, what should he see but a great big White Bear.
"Good-evening to you!" said the White Bear.
"The same to you!" said the man.
"Will you give me your youngest daughter? If you will, I'll make you as rich as you are now poor," said the Bear.
Well, the man would not be at all sorry to be so rich; but still he thought he must have a bit of a talk with his daughter first; so he went in and told them how there was a great White Bear waiting outside, who had given his word to make them so rich if he could only have the youngest daughter.
The lassie said "No!" outright. Nothing could get her to say anything else; so the man went out and settled it with the White Bear that he should come again the next Thursday evening and get an answer. Meantime he talked his daughter over, and kept on telling her of all the riches they would get, and how well off she would be herself; and so at last she thought better of it, and washed and mended her rags, made herself as smart as she could, and was ready to start. I can't say her packing gave her much trouble.
Next Thursday evening came the White Bear to fetch her, and she got upon his back with her bundle, and off they went. So, when they had gone a bit of the way, the White Bear said:
"Are you afraid?"
"No," she wasn't.
"Well! mind and hold tight by my shaggy coat, and then there's nothing to fear," said the Bear.
So she rode a long, long way, till they came to a great steep hill. There, on the face of it, the White Bear gave a knock, and a door opened, and they came into a castle where there were many rooms all lit up; rooms gleaming with silver and gold; and there, too, was a table ready laid, and it was all as grand as grand could be. Then the White Bear gave her a silver bell; and when she wanted anything, she was only to ring it, and she would get it at once.
Well, after she had eaten and drunk, and evening wore on, she got sleepy after her journey, and thought she would like to go to bed, so she rang the bell; and she had scarce taken hold of it before she came into a chamber where there was a bed made, as fair and white as any one would wish to sleep in, with silken pillows and curtains and gold fringe. All that was in the room was gold or silver; but when she had gone to bed and put out the light, a man came and laid himself alongside her. That was the White Bear, who threw off his beast shape at night; but she never saw him, for he always came after she had put out the light, and before the day dawned he was up and off again. So things went on happily for a while, but at last she began to get silent and sorrowful; for there she went about all day alone, and she longed to go home to see her father and mother and brothers and sisters. So one day, when the White Bear asked what it was that she lacked, she said it was so dull and lonely there, and how she longed to go home to see her father and mother and brothers and sisters, and that was why she was so sad and sorrowful, because she couldn't get to them.